A PUB has been named as a regional business winner in the Countryside Alliance Awards 2023.

Heft, in High Newton, is a winner in the pub category of the England leg of the awards.

Heft won the North of England pub title and now owners Kevin and Nicola Tickle and their team will go forward to the grand final, with the chance of adding the overall UK title to their name.

The Cumbrian inn and restaurant will now compete against fellow winners from across Wales, Scotland and England to see who claims the plaudits, which will be announced at a Champions Reception held at the House of Lords, on Wednesday, May 17, 2023.

The overall winner in each category will be selected by The Countryside Alliance’s national judging panel, which is chaired by Countryside Alliance Chief Executive Tim Bonner, food critic and author William Sitwell, and Daily Telegraph Associate Editor Philip Johnston.

Nicola Tickle, co-owner of Heft, said that it was ‘fantastic news’ to be the winners of the North of England title.

She said: ''Winning the North of England title is fantastic news. From the outset we’ve set out to do something different and ensure that our small village pub is an asset to the local community.

“Winning the North of England regional title certainly recognises that what we are doing at Heft and is being well received and we want to thank everyone that has supported us in getting this far.’’

In January it was included in the 2023 Estrella Damm list of the UK’s top 50 Gastropubs, listed at number 43.

Each year Estrella Damm's list, now in its 14th year, ranks the UK’s best gastropubs according to votes from more than 400 owners, food critics, and other industry experts.